We started out this week by reading Science Fair Bunnies. As I looked over this book I wasn’t sure what it was going to have to do with teeth. As it turns out the bunnies do a great little experiment that we replicated at home!

This experiment is to show you what happens to your teeth when you don’t brush like you should. Not only do you get stains from the colored food, but the acid in food (represented by the vinegar) weakens the enamel in your teeth, making them more prone to cavities.

First we had to hard boil the eggs, and observe what they looked like before we put them in the containers. Note that they are very much like teeth, white in color and hard to the touch. Then we placed one egg in a container with dark soda (in the book they use orange too), and in another in vinegar.

Then the wait begins. We let the “teeth” sit overnight in the containers. As soon as we pulled them down to check on them you could see changes. Ava noted the one in the dark soda was totally brown, and the one in the vinegar had no hard shell left at all! We concluded that by not brushing your teeth well you will have stained teeth, and they will start to get “soft” from the loss of enamel.

We also spent time talking about the different types of teeth, and how many we have. As a child Ava has 20 teeth, as an adult you usually have 36. I only have 32 because I had my wisdom teeth pulled as a teenager. We colored in a diagram of the different types of teeth (incisors, canine, pre-molar, molars) and talked about what each of the teeth are used for.

Using the color coded teeth chart we made, we started working on a number line. First with a number line for each of the different types of teeth, and then the last number line we added all the different types of teeth together.

Ava really enjoyed matching up animals to their teeth. Which of course opened up a discussion about why different animals have different teeth. Some need to tear their food, some need to really bite hard, some need to grind and gnaw. This causes each of their sets of teeth to be different.

Our lapbook is coming along very nicely. Even though Ava chose a black folder, I am finding ways to use colored construction paper to make it more colorful.

We are looking forward to next week in which we will be talking about going to the dentist, and what happens there.

Also Check Out:

The Big Book of Homeschooling

To get tons of great advice, and move beyond the basics of academics, pick up a copy of The Big Book of Homeschool Ideas. Some topics included are things like active learning, learning with video games, helping teens/tween become independent learners (one of my chapters), teaching on the road, learning with movies, high school literature (one of my chapters), and gardening.

This book can carry you through all your years of homeschooling, covering the stages your children will mature through: preschoolers, elementary grades, middle school, and high school. As your life situation changes, you will find new chapters that apply to you. You can view the full table of contents to see all 103 topics!

4 Comments

What a great experiment. I also loved the pictures. I am always so impressed with all of the great homeschooling activities. Thanks for sharing this one and I know my daughter who homeschools would love this one.